There’s a difference between unethical and illegal business practices. In some cases, unethical business practices are the reason there are laws that make those particularly scummy things illegal. Many times, those frowned-upon actions fall into more of a gray area. And sometimes, changes in culture or complaints about ongoing unethical treatment cause certain practices to shift from being just unsavory to actually against the law.

Some of those changes have brought about shifts in entire industries. Other times, it’s brought shady business deals of well-known companies into the light. And in some cases, the problems are so large that they cost employees millions of dollars each year. Take a look at the list below to be on guard against these practices at your company.

1. Hiring unpaid interns

The question of whether it is illegal to hire unpaid interns has always been clear in the law, but until only recently was largely ignored by many creative industries. The original ruling about the status of unpaid workers comes from the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, which also established the minimum wage.

Overseen by the Department of Labor, the act says that for-profit companies can only use unpaid interns if they meet six specific criteria. Of those standards, the internship has to mimic the kind of instruction the person would receive in an educational setting, and the employer must not receive any immediate advantage from the activities of the intern. (A la The Devil Wears Prada, fetching lunch orders or picking up dry cleaning do not qualify.) The arrangement must be for the benefit of the intern, not the to-do list of the company.

The clarity for the public at large about the law — including unpaid interns themselves — came in the form of a few recent lawsuits. A former intern at Harper’s Bazaar sued the magazine in 2012, saying that her long unpaid hours allowed the company to avoid hiring another staff member. “Unpaid interns are becoming the modern-day equivalent of entry-level employees, except that employers are not paying them for the many hours they work,” according to the lawsuit.

That lawsuit is on appeal in the Second Circuit, as is a ruling from June 2013 in which a judge said that Fox Searchlight Pictures should have paid production interns. That case is the first noted victory in the recent lawsuits, though another one brought by former Saturday Night Live interns for NBC was settled in October and worth a reported $6.4 million.

As one consequence of the onslaught, Condé Nast, the publishing company that produces magazines including The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and Vogue, ended its unpaid internship program in 2013.

2. Horizontal price agreements (antitrust violations)

Stan Honda/AFP/Getty Images

There are numerous facets to the Sherman Act, passed in 1890 to protect competition in the marketplace. Penalties for breaking the law can be severe, with criminal penalties up to $100 million for companies and $1 million to individuals plus 10 years in prison, not to mention the settlement prices that can be placed on top of that.

Many times, this can be seen in the example of price fixing, when competing companies collude to set a determined price on a product or service. But other arrangements between companies are also illegal, such as agreements not to compete in designated geographic areas or group boycotts against a person or other company.

In order to prove price-fixing or other violations, lawyers have to show proof of such agreements. That was done with the lawsuit against Apple, which alleged the company had colluded with five major publishers to fix e-book prices in 2010. The ruling came in July 2013, with a settlement agreement in November 2014.

3. Wage theft

Source: Thinkstock

Wage theft is one of the costliest crimes against American workers each year and often tends to affect people who are already working minimum-wage jobs. Though it can take several forms, it often includes not paying for overtime work, garnishing checks for no legal reason, or requiring employees to work off the clock for certain duties, such as setting up or cleaning up at the beginning or end of shifts.

The largest problem with this type of theft is that it isn’t easily detected: Unless employees are carefully monitoring pay stubs, a few dollars each week can be easily missed. But that can add up to thousands of dollars each year, the Economic Policy Institute notes.

To demonstrate the impact of wage theft in America, the institute compared the amount of money or goods stolen in robberies, gas station hold-ups, and other forms of theft to what was actually recovered in wage theft lawsuits or complaints. In 2012, the reported thefts that the Federal Bureau of Investigation tallied amounted to $340.9 million. Though no one tracks how much money employees lost from wage theft in that year, the institute did compile how much was recovered through litigation.

The total in 2012 was at least $933 million — almost triple that of other forms of theft. And that didn’t even include data from fives states and five attorneys general. Wage theft cases are somewhat common and even affected the Papa John’s brand when a franchise owner in New York was ordered to pay $800,000 in back wages to employees in seven pizza shops in Brooklyn and Queens.

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Read the original article from The Cheat Sheet]]>http://www.cheatsheet.com/money-career/3-illegal-things-your-company-might-be-doing.html/feed/010 Worst States in America for Young Adultshttp://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/worst-states-in-america-for-young-adults.html/
http://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/worst-states-in-america-for-young-adults.html/#respondFri, 09 Dec 2016 16:46:00 +0000Eric McWhinniehttp://wallstcheatsheet.com/?p=486852

Struggling young woman | Source: iStock

The Great Recession struck at precisely the wrong time for young adults trying to secure their economic futures. People in their early 20s suffered unemployment rates far above the national level while shouldering record amounts of student debt. More than seven years after the recession technically ended, the struggles continue and are more evident in certain states.

Which states leave young adults suffering the most? A new report from MoneyRates.com seeks to answer that question by evaluating all 50 states and the District of Columbia on the following factors:

Youth unemployment

Youthfulness of the population

Tuition costs

Rental costs

Rental availability

Access to high-speed broadband

Number of bars and other nightspots per capita

Number of fitness facilities per capita

“Obviously, different people have different tastes and different opinions on what makes a state attractive. However, some of the factors identified in the above list might just help you steer clear of states that are a little tougher on young adults,” said Richard Barrington, a MoneyRates.com senior financial analyst, in a prior update. “Or, if you are already in one of those states, seeing it rank as one of the worst for young people might just get you thinking about trying your luck elsewhere. There could be a better life waiting for you in a state where conditions are more welcoming to people like yourself.”

Let’s take a look at the 10 worst states for young adults.

10. Kentucky

Kentucky ranks as the No. 10 worst state in America for young adults. While the state ranks relatively high for the percentage of population aged 20 to 24, it falls behind in many other factors. Kentucky ranks last for concentration of fitness clubs, and poorly for access to high-speed internet, rental availability, and employment opportunities. College affordability is also worse than average. On the positive side, Kentucky has the third most affordable rent in the nation.

9. Delaware

Cape Henlopen in Lewes, Delware | Eva Hambach/AFP/Getty Images

Delaware ranks as the No. 9 worst state for young adults. The state ranks best in the nation for high-speed broadband, but quickly goes downhill after that. College affordability, rent affordability, and nightlife all rank poorly. Meanwhile, young adult employment and the percentage of young people rank worse than average. Delaware has a decent number of fitness clubs for its population, ranking No. 15 best in the country.

8. Maine

Maine | Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images

Maine ranks as the No. 8 worst state for young adults. Maine ranks in the bottom 10 for youthfulness, rental availability, and access to high-speed broadband. Other factors including college affordability and nightlife rank worse than average. However, young adult employment and rent affordability rank better than average. Maine also has a decent number of fitness clubs for its population.

7. Oregon

Portland, Oregon | Craig Mitchelldyer/Getty Images)

Oregon ranks as the No. 7 worst state for young adults, with the third-lowest proportion of its population aged 20-24. Rent availability is the second worst in the nation. Oregon also ranks poorly for young adult employment, rental affordability, and access to high-speed broadband. On a positive note, Oregon has a surprisingly high-ranking nightlife, and ranks No. 12 best for concentration of fitness clubs.

6. New Hampshire

New Hampshire | Darren McCollester/Getty Images

New Hampshire ranks as the No. 6 worst state for young adults. The state ranks well for young adult employment and concentration of fitness clubs, but the rest of the factors are easily worse than average. New Hampshire ranks last for college affordability, while access to high-speed broadband and nightlife rank No. 43 and No. 40 in the nation, respectively. New Hampshire’s youthfulness ranks No. 37.

5. Vermont

Vermont | Stan Honda/AFP/Getty Images

Vermont ranks as the No. 5 worst state for young adults, evidenced by the state’s inability to attract a large population of young twenty-somethings. Vermont ranks second worst for its 20-24 population and college affordability. It ranks third worst for access to high-speed broadband. Rental availability, rental affordability, and nightlife all rank worse than average. However, Vermont ranks best in the nation for concentration of fitness clubs.

4. California

Sun setting on California’s Highway 1 | Source: iStock

You wouldn’t know it from looking at the twenty-something population, but California ranks as the No. 4 worst state for young adults. The state ranks near the bottom for rental availability (No. 49), rental affordability (No. 49), and nightlife (No. 42). Young adult employment and concentration of fitness clubs also rank poorly. On the positive side, young adults will be surrounded by like-minded people. California’s percentage of population aged 20 to 24 ranks No. 5 highest in the nation.

2. Arizona

Arizona | Source: iStock

Arizona is tied as the second worst state for young adults. The state ranks near the bottom for young adult employment, access to high-speed broadband, and nightlife. Arizona’s rankings in college affordability, rental affordability, and concentration of fitness clubs are below average. That’s unfortunate, since its rental availability rank is No. 12 in the nation, and its percentage of population aged 20-24 is about average at No. 27.

2. Virginia

State park in Virginia | Source: iStock

Virginia is tied with Arizona as the second worst state for young adults. The state ranks near the bottom in the nation for college affordability, rental affordability, access to high-speed broadband, and nightlife. Young adult employment ranks below average at No. 31. Virginia’s one bright spot is its high concentration of fitness clubs, ranking No. 16.

1. Washington

Washington | Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images

Washington ranks as the worst state in America for young adults. The state ranks below average on seven of eight criteria studied. The only exception is the decent concentration of fitness clubs (No. 18 in nation). Washington ranks fourth worst in young adult employment. However, the population of young adults is likely higher than you think. Washington ranks No. 35 in the nation in regard to its percentage of population aged 20-24, better than Virginia, Vermont, New Hampshire, Oregon, Maine, and Delaware.

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Read the original article from The Cheat Sheet]]>http://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/worst-states-in-america-for-young-adults.html/feed/0Top 10 States in America With the Highest Taxes in 2016http://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/states-with-the-highest-taxes.html/
http://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/states-with-the-highest-taxes.html/#respondFri, 09 Dec 2016 12:58:00 +0000Eric McWhinniehttp://wallstcheatsheet.com/?p=455592

Taxes and Uncle Sam | Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Benjamin Franklin once wrote, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” If you’re like most Americans, paying Uncle Sam is your largest financial burden. In fact, the nation as a whole doesn’t earn enough money to pay its total tax bill for the year until April. Making matters worse for some individuals, taxes can vary significantly between states.

Highest state taxes

WalletHub recently analyzed how state and local tax rates compare to the national median in all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia. The purpose was to determine which states pay the highest and lowest tax rates, and to see how each state stacks up against the national median. This comparison was based on four different types of taxation: real estate taxes (based on a median home price of $175,700), vehicle property taxes (based on a 2016 Toyota Camry LE), income taxes (based on mean third quintile income of $53,889), and sales and excise taxes.

Taxpayers in the states with the highest taxes pay three times more than those in the states with the lowest taxes. We previously took a look at the cities with the highest taxes – now, let’s take a look at the 10 states with the highest state and local taxes, according to WalletHub.

10. New Jersey

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: $6,675

Difference from National Average: 15.7%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 47

The Northeast is not particularly kind to taxpayers. New Jersey ranks as the No. 10 worst state when it comes to tax bills. The state doesn’t charge a vehicle property tax, but its real estate taxes are worst in class, with the average bill totaling $4,029. However, a cheaper option is nearby. Delaware ranks as the second best state in the country for taxes. In fact, the average annual state and local tax bill in Delaware is less than half of New Jersey’s tax bill.

9. Iowa

Iowa | Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: $6,872

Difference from National Average: 19.12%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 31

Iowa ranks as the No. 9 worst state for taxes, and has few solutions for taxpayers looking to stay close to home. Out of the six bordering states, South Dakota has the lowest average tax bill at $5,275. That is a decent difference, but few people are willing to move to South Dakota primarily for tax reasons. Missouri might be the most practical option. The state ranks roughly in the middle at $6,091.

8. Ohio

Ohio | Source: Thinkstock

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: $6,991

Difference from National Average: 21.19%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 36

Ohio ranks as the No. 8 worst state for taxes. The average tax bill totals $6,991, which is 21% above the national average. The state ranks poorly on real estate taxes (No. 40 in America), but better than average on income taxes. It also ranks comparable to its neighbors Pennsylvania and Indiana. Like New Jersey, Ohio doesn’t have a vehicle property tax.

7. Michigan

Detroit | Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: $7,054

Difference from National Average: 22.28%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 35

Michigan is the first state on the list to crack the $7,000 level. The state ranks as the No. 7 worst state for taxes with an average bill of $7,054. Real estate taxes and income taxes rank poorly compared to the rest of the country, while its vehicle property taxes are in the middle of the pack. On the positive side, the state’s sales and excise taxes rank better than average.

6. New York

New York | Source: iStock

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: $7,211

Difference from National Average: 25%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 51

Living in America’s largest city comes at a steep price. New York ranks as the No. 6 worst state for taxes. Its tax bill of $7,211 is among the highest in the country, and the worst when adjusted for cost of living. New York ranks poorly on real estate taxes, income taxes, and sales and excise taxes, as it has some of the highest taxes on gasoline and cigarettes you’ll find. You’re in luck if you own a vehicle, as there is no vehicle property tax.

5. Rhode Island

Rhode Island | Source: iStock

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: $7,255

Difference from National Average: 25.77%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 48

Rhode Island’s land mass is small, but its taxes more than make up for it. The state ranks as the No. 5 worst state for taxes. In fact, you won’t find much relief anywhere. Rhode Island ranks dead last for vehicle property taxes, near the bottom on real estate taxes, and only about average on income taxes and sales and excise taxes. Neighboring Connecticut doesn’t rank any better, but at least Massachusetts comes in at No. 31 overall.

4. Connecticut

Connecticut | Source: Thinkstock

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: $7,262

Difference from National Average: 25.89%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 50

Connecticut ranks as the No. 4 worst state for taxes, with the average tax bill only $7 more than Rhode Island’s. The state’s real estate taxes and vehicle property taxes are almost dead last in the country, but its income taxes and sales and excise taxes are slightly better than average. Aside from New York and Rhode Island, almost every state in the Northeast has significantly lower tax bills.

3. Wisconsin

Wisconsin | Source: The American Club via Facebook

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: $7,316

Difference from National Average: 26.82%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 41

High real estate and income taxes make Wisconsin the No. 3 worst state for taxes. The average real estate tax bill is a whopping $3,459, while income taxes add another $1,918 to the overall tax burden. However, there is no vehicle property tax, and the state’s sales and excise taxes rank quite low.

2. Nebraska

Nebraska | Eric Francis/Getty Images

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: $7,466

Difference from National Average: 29.41%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 39

Nebraska ranks as the No. 2 worst state for taxes. The average tax bill of $7,466 is 29.41% above the national average. Real estate taxes ($3,301), vehicle property taxes ($340), and sales and excise taxes ($2,462) are all a major blow to taxpayers. The state’s income tax is right in the middle of the pack at $1,363. Overall, every state bordering Nebraska ranks better when it comes to taxes.

1. Illinois

Illinois | Scott Olson/Getty Images

Average Annual State and Local Taxes: 7,836

Difference from National Average: 35.83%

Adjusted Rank by Cost of Living: 43

Illinois ranks as the worst state in America for taxes. The state’s average tax bill of $7,836 is almost 36% higher than the national average. It ranks dead last for real estate taxes ($3,959), and No. 30 for income taxes ($1,520). On a positive note, there is no vehicle property tax.

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Read the original article from The Cheat Sheet]]>http://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/states-with-the-highest-taxes.html/feed/010 Greatest Grammy Performances of All Timehttp://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/10-greatest-grammy-performances-of-all-time.html/
http://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/10-greatest-grammy-performances-of-all-time.html/#respondThu, 08 Dec 2016 12:32:00 +0000Jacqueline Sahagianhttp://wallstcheatsheet.com/?p=448151The 59th annual Grammy Awards are coming up on Sunday. While the awards seem to lose more and more of their credibility with each year that passes — you can’t give a music prize to Justin Bieber and still expect people to take you seriously — music’s biggest night has been the host to some truly incredible performances over the years.

One of the coolest things about the Grammys is the awards show’s tendency to bring together some unexpected collaborations, amazing tributes, and triumphant returns to the stage. While we all eagerly await to see talented artists sharing the stage on February 12, here’s a list of the 10 best Grammy performances of all time (so far).

1. Adele – “Rolling in the Deep”

Adele performs onstage | Christopher Polk/Getty Images for NARAS

Adele took the stage at the 2012 Grammy Awards after canceling part of her 2011 tour to have throat surgery that put her voice in jeopardy. To prove that she had healed just fine, Adele began “Rolling in the Deep” a cappella, and by the end of her performance, she convinced everyone that not even vocal cord surgery could damage her pipes. Adele’s performance bucked the trend for female pop stars to use the Grammys as a platform to give over-the-top performances while wearing as little clothing as possible, giving us all hope that you can still win a pop Grammy on the grounds of vocal talent alone. Adele went on to win all six Grammys she was nominated for that night, including Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Solo Performance.

2. Beyoncé and Tina Turner – “Proud Mary”

Beyoncé’s tribute to Tina Turner at the 2008 Grammy Awards was a kind of baton-passing from one soul goddess to the next. Beyoncé gives Turner possibly the most epic introduction anyone has ever received, then joins the queen of soul onstage for a rollicking rendition of “Proud Mary.” Tina proved she could still keep up with someone as young as Beyoncé, and Beyoncé showed that she herself has developed into an artist that embodies all the qualities she described as becoming of an iconic diva like Tina Turner. Also, there’s not much chance of seeing Beyoncé starstruck ever again.

3. Eric Clapton – “Tears in Heaven”

Clapton performed “Tears in Heaven” at the 1993 Grammy Awards, just two years after the tragic death of his 4-year-old son Conor, for whom the song was written. Conor died after accidentally falling 49 stories from the window of his mother’s New York City apartment in the spring of 1991. Clapton’s Grammys performance saw the guitar god ditching his Stratocaster for a toned-down acoustic, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. The song went on to win Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

4. Chuck Berry with Stevie Ray Vaughn and George Thorogood – “Maybelline” and “Roll Over Beethoven”

At the 1984 Grammy Awards, Vaughn and Thorogood paid homage to the most influential rock and roll guitarist ever to pick up the instrument. Berry proved that he can still duck walk with the best of them, beginning the show with a solo rendition of “Maybelline” and then being joined by Vaughn and Thorogood for “Roll Over Beethoven.” Berry arguably did more than any other performer to shape the early history of rock and roll, and the man has never received the credit he deserves for pioneering an art form. The performance in this video starts at 55 seconds in.

5. Aretha Franklin – “Nessun Dorma”

The queen of soul filled in for her friend Luciano Pavarotti on just 20 minutes’ notice after the opera legend was forced to cancel his 1998 Grammy performance due to medical concerns. Franklin performed the aria “Nessun Dorma” from the final act of Puccini’s opera “Turandot” and hit every note. The performance shows the versatility of Franklin’s voice, which has been named one of Michigan’s natural treasures, and showed that a serious performance of a classical piece of music was still possible at the Grammy Awards.

6. Amy Winehouse – “You Know I’m No Good” and “Rehab”

Winehouse, after facing drug charges in England, wasn’t allowed into the United States to give her 2008 Grammy performance despite her album Back to Black being nominated for a plethora of the trophies. She instead gave a performance of “You Know I’m No Good” and “Rehab” from England via satellite. This performance should serve as a reminder to anyone who only remembers Winehouse as a drug-addled mess that, while a drug-addled mess she was, she was also one of the greatest singers to emerge in the last decade. Her performance was pure rock and roll, as Winehouse flirted with the camera, gave shout-outs to her incarcerated husband, and proved she still had that voice despite a year filled with cancelled tour dates and tabloid drama. She won Best New Artist, Song of the Year, and Record of the Year in 2008.

After Clash frontman Joe Strummer’s sudden death in 2002, these rock legends got together at the 2003 Grammy Awards to pay tribute to the iconic punk band. This is possibly the most punk performance that has ever been witnessed by the Grammys, as Strummer’s line “phony Beatlemania has bitten the dust” seemed as sacrilegious as ever being sung in front of the Grammy audience. London Calling is one of the most influential albums ever made, and underneath the punk veneer you can see the complete glee of the guys onstage, thrilled that they have the opportunity to perform such a song and give tribute to a band that influenced them all.

Nine months pregnant, M.I.A. held her own among some of hip hop’s best talents for a mashup of her single “Paper Planes” and T.I’s “Swagga Like Us” at the 2009 Grammy Awards: It’s the absolute definition of bad ass. Hip hop is a notoriously male-dominated genre, and seeing a woman onstage, palling around with four of the biggest rappers of the moment, was a refreshing sight. When she sang “swagga like us,” M.I.A. placed herself squarely on the same level as the men around her — she refused to embody the typical female rap backup vocal and stand in the background. The awards show was apparently scheduled on M.I.A.’s due date, but that didn’t deter her from showing up and showing off with as much swagger as the boys.

After an appropriately eclectic introduction from Beck, the blues duo from Detroit melted the Grammys’ face off, transitioning into a cover of Son House’s “Death Letter” from their hit “Seven Nation Army.” Jack White would never miss an opportunity to educate us about the history of the blues while simultaneously giving one of his unique slide guitar solos played on his beat-up old Kay Hollowbody. Meg White’s minimalistic drumming proved the old adage “less is more,” and the pair’s chemistry gave the performance a less rehearsed feeling than most acts that grace the Grammy stage. Quentin Tarantino’s reaction at the end pretty much says it all.

10. Bob Dylan – “Love Sick”

Who can forget the insanity of the Soy Bomb incident? While Dylan was giving his best televised performance in years for the Time Out of Mind track, a shirtless performance artist with the words “Soy Bomb” painted on his chest jumped onstage and began wildly dancing. He could have almost been mistaken for a part of Dylan’s act, since Dylan continued with the performance while stealing a couple confused sidelong glances at the dancer. Soy Bomb man was dragged offstage while Dylan ripped into one of the best guitar solos that the Grammys has ever seen. Bob Dylan went on to win Album of the Year for Time Out of Mind. Below is the version with Soy Bomb included, and here is an official video of the performance with Soy Bomb edited out.

Read the original article from The Cheat Sheet]]>http://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/10-greatest-grammy-performances-of-all-time.html/feed/010 States Most Dependent on the Federal Governmenthttp://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/states-dependent-on-federal-government.html/
http://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/states-dependent-on-federal-government.html/#respondTue, 06 Dec 2016 00:42:00 +0000Sam Beckerhttp://wallstcheatsheet.com/?p=455805

Self-sufficiency is an American ideal, and one that many people take great care to achieve, and pride in attaining. It isn’t easy, though, and there are many factors at play. It’s not simply a calculation of who has the most money or best skill set — although that plays a part in it. Resources simply aren’t always distributed equally. And even if you look at which states themselves are the richest or poorest, you’re not getting a complete picture.

The true genius of America’s political organization lies partially within the way the states and the federal government form a cohesive bond. Essentially, the states themselves act as individual laboratories, all separate and able to take self-direction and action, yet all tied together under a unified central government.

Individuals in each city, county and state are free to elect their own representatives, whether to local governmental bodies or federal ones. In this way, we are all able to get a glimpse into how competing ideologies or methodologies for governance work for different groups of people in different situations, and cherry pick from a variety of different perspectives.

As a result, each state has a certain amount of natural competition with its counterparts. States compete with each other in order to attract businesses and investment dollars, for example, or to attract students to their universities. However, given the major demographic, economic, political, and geographical differences between different states, some carry unique burdens while others have unique advantages. Border states, for example, are much more concerned with immigration policies than central states are, and Gulf Coast states are much more concerned with the health and viability of the Gulf of Mexico than those located in the northeast, who may be more concerned about political tensions with Europe and Canada.

Because of differences like these, as well as differences in policy and fiscal decisions, states depend on support from the federal government to vastly different degrees. WalletHub recently released its annual study looking at federal dependency and assumed the burden of digging into the data to find out definitively which states lean the most-heavily on Uncle Sam for support. The methodology is complex, so it’s recommended you click over and check out the release in its entirety

10. Missouri

Kansas City, Missouri | Thinkstock

Missouri didn’t crack the top 10 in 2015, but this year, the state edges in. Missouri is a state that seemingly has everything: large cities, rural areas, military bases, and federal land. There are a number of factors that are at play as to why Missouri has become so dependent on Washington, and as we saw with the Ferguson riots over the past year, many people are living out tough lives.

Missouri supplanted Maine this year (which dropped two spots) to make it into WalletHub’s top 10.

9. West Virginia

Charleston, West Virginia | Joe Raedle/Getty Images

West Virginia, located in the heart of Appalachia, which is one of the poorer regions in the country. Due to its relatively low population — totaling less than 2 million residents — there is not an incredible amount of tax dollars flowing to Washington D.C. from West Virginia to begin with.

As mentioned, West Virginia’s residents are also some of the country’s most impoverished. Many people earn low wages, work dangerous jobs, and are forced to handle a rather difficult socio-economic environment. For this reason, lots of aid in the form of government assistance is returned to West Virginia residents. The land is rough and the people are tough, but West Virginia does end up on the receiving end of more federal tax dollars than they put in.

8. Kentucky

Kentucky residents have a tough go in terms of socio-economic conditions, particularly in the rural eastern part of the state. There are some large cities, like Lexington and Louisville, that have plenty of successful businesses and wealthy residents, but many of the state’s citizens still lag well behind, as evidenced by the leaps in the poverty rate over the past few years. That leads to high levels of government assistance to those in need.

Also of note, there are several military bases and installations in Kentucky that employ thousands, as well as portions of government-controlled land that require federal funding. Not to mention Fort Knox.

7. South Dakota

Sioux Falls, South Dakota | iStock.com/shyflygirl

South Dakota is home to some of the poorest counties in the nation. It also plays host to large amounts of Native American land and some of the country’s most spectacular national parks and monuments. For a state with such a low population, those two factors alone can quickly skew the numbers. There is also a large military establishment near Rapid City, Ellsworth Air Force Base, which provides federal jobs to many servicemen and women.

These major factors — Indian reservations, national parks, and a military presence — coupled with a low population and tax base, play a big part in making South Dakota appear to be heavily-subsidized by the federal government.

6. Montana

Missoula, Montana | iStock.com/Andy Kemmis

States out west get a rough shake from the federal government, as seen previously with Arizona. Montana is one of those states but doesn’t have the advantage of a relatively high population or major cities that Arizona does. In fact, the state’s largest city is Billings, with a population of roughly 165,000.

Montana sits on the Canadian border, requiring federal funding to remain secure, and is also home to some of the country’s most incredible national parks, like Glacier National Park, and part of Yellowstone. There are huge amounts of federally-controlled land and a handful of considerably large Indian reservations that take in federal dollars.

5. Tennessee

Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee | Source: iStock

Tennessee is a new-comer to the top 10 this year. Like many of its neighboring states, Tennessee is rife with economic burdens. There are a few large cities and population centers — not to mention some large universities — but despite those large tax bases, the state still requires help from Washington. The state’s population has been hit hard by recent economic downturns, and as with other states in the Midwest and South, globalization has seen many jobs relocated.

4. Louisiana

New Orleans, Louisiana | Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images

Louisiana has been on a roller coaster ride, climbing from the number four spot to number eight on 2015’s list, and then this year, back to number four. States along the Gulf Coast are susceptible to many things others states don’t have to deal with. For example, Louisiana does provide the federal government with substantial tax revenues from the offshore drilling industry, but is also in harm’s way when it comes to devastating natural disasters, like Hurricane Katrina. Many parts of the state have yet to recover, and lots of citizens were displaced as a result.

The state also has lots of infrastructure to maintain, as it is a rather complicated engineering feat to keep cities like New Orleans from ending up under water. There are also a lot of socio-economic issues that Louisiana has to deal with, as the state has the second-highest poverty rate in the country.

3. Alabama

Huntsville, Alabama | Source: iStock

Another state located along the Gulf Coast, Alabama is one of the most poverty-stricken in the nation. The state is home to five military bases and a major port city in Mobile. Alabama is also ranked highly in terms of its population of the economically-disadvantaged, with some reports pegging it as high as the sixth-poorest in the nation.

With so many people in lower income brackets, many people are not able to pay much — if any — in taxes, and tend to get substantial government assistance. Add in immigration and natural disaster issues, and it’s clear why Alabama needs some help from Washington.

2. New Mexico

Source: iStock

New Mexico was 2015’s most dependent state on the federal government, but that’s not without good reason. New Mexico shares a lot of the same issues that its neighbor Arizona does: it’s a border state — with a lot of immigration issues to tend to — and one that houses a lot of federal land.

There are also some major science and military installations that call New Mexico home, including the White Sands Test Facility and Los Alamos National Laboratory, both requiring substantial federal funding. Add on to that a handful of military installations as well. Large portions of the state are also designated as Indian reservations, placing an even greater amount of federal dollars in New Mexico’s jurisdiction.

1. Mississippi

Jackson, Mississippi | iStock.com/Sean Pavone

Along with its Gulf Coast neighbors, Mississippi is heavily-dependent on the federal government. Mississippi found itself in first place in 2014 as well, and fell to number two in 2015 — yet, is back in the top spot for 2016. Mississippi suffers from some serious socio-economic issues, including having the nation’s highest poverty rate, and one of the lowest income rates in the country.

These are problems that have plagued the state for a long time, and there doesn’t appear to be any hope for change in the near future. There are a few things that capture federal funding that add to the state’s total, including several military bases, but the major issue appears to be the lack of jobs and opportunity suffered by the state’s citizens. Natural and man-made disasters in the Gulf of Mexico haven’t helped either.

[Update, 5/4/16: New information added throughout article!] Whether or not you felt it was worth the wait, the year’s release of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was the end result of a long and seemingly impossible quest to get the two superheroes in the same film. And with plans for a Wonder Woman and Justice League movie in 2017, fans will soon be getting two more films that for many years seemed doomed to an eternity in development without ever seeing the light of day.

But while Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and other DC Extended Universe movies managed to break out of the cycle of development limbo, there’s still a wide variety of exciting films just waiting for the opportunity to break free. Some of these films appear to be close to getting made, while others will almost certainly never get made. Here are eight interesting films, in no particular order, that remain stuck in development hell for a variety of reasons.

1. Ghostbusters 3

Ghostbusters (1984) | Source: Black Rhino Productions

First of all, just to be clear, this entry refers to an aborted project that would have involved the cast of the original Ghostbusters, not the rebooted version with a new cast that is coming out this summer. Dan Aykroyd originally wrote a script that revolved around the original group of Ghostbusters getting transported to a hell-like version of Manhattan, but according to Harold Ramis, “no one was motivated to pursue it,” and the script ended up being used as the basis for Ghostbusters: The Video Game.

Then, Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg, writer-producers on The Office, wrote a script that introduced a new group of young Ghostbusters with the old ones appearing in a mentor role, according to Ramis. However, the failure of their comedy Year One then put that version of the film in jeopardy. As if the story situation couldn’t get any more complicated, Aykroyd appeared on Larry King Now in May and said, “It’s based upon new research that’s being done in particle physics by the young men and women at Columbia University,” seemingly giving out concrete story elements.

However, Aykroyd has never exactly been the person to ask about the status of the film, having said the film was on the verge of production on various occasions for a decade. And then you have potential Ghostbusters 3 director Ivan Reitman, the director of the first two films, telling Slash Film, “we’ve been thinking of alternatives, and we’re actually making some real progress, and we’ll see what happens. That’s the most honest answer I can think of.” So who knows what’s really going on with this film on the script level since even the filmmakers can’t give consistent answers.

Script problems aside, one of the biggest issues with a potential Ghostbusters 3 has also been that actor Bill Murray reportedly isn’t interested in returning — which is probably the only consistent factor in the history of Ghostbusters 3′s development. “I would love to work with him again. I’d hope that he could be in this film. He could be, he might not be, I really don’t know,” Reitman told Slash Film. The lack of Murray’s Peter Venkman in a potential third film begs the question as to whether there’s even a point in trying to figure out this decade-long train-wreck. However, the final blow to the project came with the tragic death of Harold Ramis in early 2014. Plans for a sequel starring the original cast were scrapped, and a reboot starring a new, all-female crew was made instead.

2. Halo

Master Chief | Source: Microsoft

The story of Halo’s attempts to reach the big screen start in 2005 when Microsoft hired screenwriter Alex Garland (28 Days Later, Sunshine, Dredd) to adapt the hugely popular game franchise for the screen. When the script was completed, it was sent to all the major studios where most studio-heads balked at Microsoft’s asking price of $10 million against 15 percent of the gross.

Then, 20th Century Fox and Universal decided to partner up for the film. Soon after, Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings) was attached to be executive producer along with director Neil Blomkamp (District 9, Elysium), who at this time had not directed a feature film.

D.B. Weiss and Josh Olson were later involved in rewrites of Garland’s script while arguments over profit-sharing reached a standstill, causing the studios to pull the plug. Blomkamp and Jackson went on to collaborate on District 9 soon after — but not before Blomkamp’s seven minute Halo movie demo hit the internet and galvanized fans.

At this point, the rights to Halo have reverted back to Microsoft, but all the signs point to the film being made at some point. In 2009, Steven Spielberg expressed interest in making a Halo film and Blomkamp said 2013, “I still really love the world and the universe and the mythology of Halo. If I was given control, I would really like to do that film.” However, as of May 2016, the status of the Halo movie remains unknown, according to IMDb.

3. At the Mountains of Madness

At the Mountains of Madness would have been based on the famous horror novella of the same name written by H. P. Lovecraft. The story follows a group of explorers in Antarctica who discover the remains of an ancient, alien city, eventually finding that the creatures were once the creators of all life. The explorers also find out that they’re not alone, discovering six-foot tall blind penguins that serve as livestock for something much, much worse.

Director Guillermo del Toro and screenwriter Matthew Robbins wrote a screenplay based on the novella in the mid-2000′s and immediately ran into trouble trying to finance the project due to the dark nature of the story. But in 2010, it seemed like Del Toro had finally gotten the go ahead; it was announced that not only would the film be moving forward starring Tom Cruise and in 3D, but James Cameron would be producing. The above picture is from Del Toro’s personal journal sketches from the film (go here to check out some of Del Toro’s other sketches).

Then, in March 2011, which was only months before Del Toro had believed he was to start filming, Universal refused to greenlight the film due to Del Toro’s insistence that the film be R-rated. Del Toro then tried to shop the film around to other studios without any luck.

However, Del Toro said in January 2013 that he’d like to give the film one more shot and that Tom Cruise is still attached. “Once more into the dark abyss. We’re gonna do a big presentation of the project again at the start of the year,” he said.

4. Akira

Akira | Source: TMS Entertainment

Akira is one of the most famous Japanese manga series, which was later turned into one of the most famous animated Japanese films of all-time. The story depicts a dystopian version of the future as a teenage biker Tetsuo Shima begins to discover his psychic powers and threatens to unleash the imprisoned psychic Akira. Tetsuo’s friend, Shotaro Kaneda, is then forced to go on a mission to save his friend from his destructive powers.

Warner Bros. acquired the rights to Akira in 2002 and has been trying to get a live-action version of the movie made ever since. Around 2010, the film came as close as it’s ever been to being produced, with Leonardo DiCaprio attached as one of the film’s producers and Albert Hughes attached to direct; however, Hughes later dropped out over creative differences. Jaume Collet-Serra was then brought on to direct before the film was shut down for the fourth time.

The sheer amount of actors rumored to be involved in the film seem endless; DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon Levitt, James Franco, Michael Fassbender, Justin Timberlake, Joaquin Phoenix have all been considered at one point for one of the two leads — and that’s only a fraction of the actors who have been considered.

In 2013, Jaume Collet-Serra entered the project once again as director. More recently, Marco J. Ramirez — who penned the second season of Netflix’s Daredevil series — was brought on by Warner Bros. to write the script, while director Christopher Nolan was rumored to be eyeing the project, albeit as a trilogy. However, as of May 2016, it still remains to be seen if the live-action Akira will ever make it out of development hell and into theaters.

5. The Tourist

Concept art for The Tourist by H.R. Giger | Source: HRGiger.com

The Tourist is a science-fiction screenplay that’s been making the rounds since 1980. Written by Clair Noto, the script initially caught the attention of Quadrophenia director Franc Roddam along with well-known production designer HR Giger. The website io9describes the film as “a darker, sex-charged Men In Black.” More specifically, it “revealed a secret alien world in Manhattan, including a secret alien club called the Corridor, where various aliens from all over the universe meet, have sex, and commiserate about being stuck on Earth.”

The film began its 30 plus years of development hell at Universal, but was immediately met with creative differences and personality clashes, according to io9. The structure of the script was influenced by the New Wave and director Brian Gibson and writers attempted to revise the script into a more conventional structure. At the same time, HR Giger was brought in fresh off the success of Alienand asked to design the aliens of the Corridor.

When the process stalled, Noto was able to use a rare clause in her contract to shop the script to another studio. It found it’s way to Francis Ford Coppola’s Zoetrope Studio for a brief moment, with director Francis Roddam showing strong interest, but financial issues at Zoetrope caused the project to stall once again. Universal then came back for the screenplay rights and the project simply hit a dead end.

So where is it now? Well, Universal still owns the rights to the script, but it doesn’t appear that the film is any closer to making it to the big screen today than it ever was. As io9 laments in the title to their article on the project, The Tourist might be the greatest sci-fi movie never made.

6. Blood Meridian

Cormac McCarthy’s dark western Blood Meridian has often been referred to as unfilmable for many different reasons, but it hasn’t stopped directors from trying — the most recent being James Franco. Blood Meridian follows a teenager referred to as “the kid” and his experiences with the Glanton gang, which was a historical group of scalp hunters who massacred Native Americans and others in the United States-Mexico borderlands between 1849 and 1850.

If the synopsis doesn’t tip you off to one of the biggest problems, let’s make it clear: this book is unbelievably violent. In fact, it makes the violence in McCarthy’s No Country for Old Men seem tame in comparison. While McCarthy’s lyrical prose almost makes the violence in the book bearable, a film wouldn’t have the benefit of that beautiful prose — what you see is what you get. And what you get is violence that rivals and surpasses even a film like Hostel.

Of course, someone will figure out the key sooner or later and make a film of it despite the violence. Franco even reached the point of releasing test footage (via Vice) with actors Mark Pellegrino, Scott Glenn, Dave Franco, and Luke Perry, but now he joins Todd Field and Ridley Scott as directors who have tried and failed to get this film on the big screen.

But with All the Pretty Horses, The Road, and No Country For Old Men all having been translated to award-winning films, it’s only a matter of time before Blood Meridian does the same.

[Update, 5/5/16: Added casting news.] It appears that James Franco’s adaptation of Blood Meridian is beginning to gain traction. According to a report from The Hollywood Reporter, Russell Crowe will star in the film along with Tye Sheridan, Vincent D’Onofrio, and Franco. At this time it’s still unclear what role Crowe or the other actors will play.

7. The Dark Tower series

The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger is the first book in a series of eight novels by Stephen King, which are often referred to as his magnum opus. The story revolves around the gunslinger Roland Deschain and his pursuit of “the man in black” and his eventual journey to the titular Dark Tower.

Talk of a film adaptation of The Dark Tower started to gain momentum when J.J. Abrams was briefly attached to direct in 2007 before removing himself from the project, calling the adaptation “tricky.” Ron Howard then became attached to the adaptation, along with partner producer Brian Grazer, and the film has seemingly been on the verge of production ever since.

Universal and Howard were supposedly close to a deal at one point before the studio backed out due to Howard’s scope being too ambitious at a time when Universal was trying to cut costs — the very same reason the studio backed out of Del Toro’s At the Mountains of Madness. Warner Bros. later came close to a deal before backing out for similar reasons.

In 2013, Howard and Grazer were able to secure funding from Media Rights Capital to produce a single movie based on The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger with Russell Crowe set to star as Roland Deschain. However, the studio eventually dropped that version of the project due to budgetary concerns.

Fortunately, this long-awaited movie finally seems to be getting some traction. In March 2016, Stephen King confirmed via his Twitter account that Idris Elba would play the gunslinger, while Matthew McConaughey would play the mystical foe known as the man in black. Nikolaj Arcel (A Royal Affair) is set to direct the movie, which is scheduled to begin shooting in May 2016, with a tentative premiere date of January 13, 2017. King fans likely have their fingers crossed that it’s the real deal this time.

8. Rendezvous With Rama

Written by Arthur C. Clarke, the writer of 2001, Rendezvous With Rama tells the story of an alien starship that enters the Earth’s solar system and the group of explorers who journey to it in order to discover its secrets.

Actor Morgan Freeman has been the strongest driving force to get a film adaption of Rendezvous With Rama made, and he’s been trying since the early 2000′s. It nearly went into production in 2003 with David Fincher slated to direct, but the production later fell apart, and in 2008, Fincher said, ”It looks like it’s not going to happen. There’s no script and as you know, Morgan Freeman’s not in the best of health right now. We’ve been trying to do it but it’s probably not going to happen.”

Read the original article from The Cheat Sheet]]>http://www.cheatsheet.com/stocks/8-interesting-films-stuck-in-development-hell.html/feed/05 Reasons You May Want to Save Your Old Apple Deviceshttp://www.cheatsheet.com/technology/reasons-you-want-to-save-old-apple-devices.html/
http://www.cheatsheet.com/technology/reasons-you-want-to-save-old-apple-devices.html/#respondSun, 04 Dec 2016 14:06:00 +0000Nathanael Arnoldhttp://wallstcheatsheet.com/?p=502902

Source: JOHN G. MABANGLO/AFP/Getty Images

“Antique,” “classic,” or “old” are words that do not usually have a positive connotation in the fast-paced world of technology. Although tech companies like Apple have an obvious economic incentive for releasing new devices each year, there are also real technological advancements that justify the company’s annual product refreshes. (Just take a look at the laundry list of improvements expected to make their debut with the iPhone 7 this fall.) In fact, the speed at which technological advancements are made in computing hardware practically guarantees that the devices that are released next year will outperform the models that are available today.

Even in the rare cases when the latest version of an electronic gadget doesn’t offer a substantial performance improvement over the last generation, there is still a social prestige benefit associated with owning the newest tech device. In other words, some folks will upgrade to the latest iPhone or MacBook model just to keep up with the Joneses, whether or not they actually make use of the updated device’s capabilities. Either way, whenever a customer does decide to upgrade one of their Apple products, chances are they will simultaneously get rid of their old device through Apple’s Recycling Program, especially since recycling an old device can usually get them a discount on a new product.

However, when it comes to getting their money’s worth out of older Apple products, recent secondhand market trends suggest that at least a few customers might be better off hanging on to their old iPhones or iPods, rather than cashing them in for in-store credit. There are multiple examples of Apple products that have ended up increasing, rather than decreasing in value over time. Here are five Apple products that may cause you to reconsider how long you keep your old tech devices.

1. The original Apple watch

Source: originalapplewatch.com

The Apple Watch made its debut in spring of 2015. While it’s unknown how much future Apple product collectors will pay for the original Apple Watch, or the Apple Watch 2 that’s reportedly on its way, the company has already created one timepiece that has appreciated in value.

As spotted by MacRumors, an unnamed Apple distributor sold the “original Apple Watch,” a brightly-colored Quartz wristwatch emblazoned with Apple’s logo that was offered as a free promotional item to encourage customers to upgrade to the latest Mac OS in 1995. Prices ranged between $199 for a “flawless” model to $99 for a model with “minor blemishes.” While that’s not an incredibly high price for a vintage Apple product, considering that the original price of the watch was zero, $199 or $99 is a pretty impressive increase in value.

2. The iPod classic

Photo by Cate Gillon/Getty Images

At the same time that Apple unveiled the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus models, it quietly discontinued one of the most successful products in its history: the iPod classic. While sales of Apple’s iPod line had been steadily falling due to cannibalization by the iPhone (and the growing popularity of music streaming over digital downloads), it appears that the death knell for the iPod classic was a shortage of parts.

“We couldn’t get the parts any more,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook at the WSJD Live conference in 2014, according to Engadget. “They don’t make them any more. We would have to make a whole new product…. the engineering work to do that would be massive. The number of people who wanted it is very small.”

While the number of people who still want an iPod classic may be small, they are apparently willing to pay a premium for the device. As The Guardian noted in 2014, mint condition 160GB iPod classics were being offered for as much as 670 pounds or $1,050 on Amazon, more than four times the device’s suggested retail price of $249. The 160GB capacity version was especially desirable, since at the time, the highest storage capacity currently offered in Apple’s line of digital media players was only 64GB. (That was before Apple introduced the updated iPod Touch, which is offered with up to 128GB of storage.)

3. The iPhone 6 “prototype”

Source: eBay.com / kimberlyk1018

While the iPhone 6 isn’t really old yet, one buyer’s recent experience demonstrates the unusually high value that even recent Apple products can acquire under certain circumstances. Proving that even Apple’s errors can be worth big bucks, a user who inexplicably received a test version of a 64GB iPhone 6 from Verizon was able to sell the device for $11,100, according to CultofMac.

The seller, who was identified as Alex Kantor by CNET, described the device to the news site.“I determined that this iPhone was a version not meant for the consumer market after seeing the software version on it,” Kantor told CNET. “I am an avid tech lover and I knew what this software was right away. It is actually called SwitchBoard and is only for internal Apple testing. Also, there is no FCC markings on the rear of the device or model number. Also, there is a red charging port which is known on prototypes.”

Although the “prototype” device garnered bids as high as $100,000 when it was originally listed on eBay, it was later removed when Apple contacted the seller. “I have been informed by Apple that this phone is not a prototype, but rather a device that went through the manufacturing process and was never completed,” wrote Kantor in a new listing. While the device wasn’t a true prototype, Kantor was still able to sell his unique iPhone 6 for $11,100.

It should be noted that former Gizmodo editor Jason Chen acquired a real iPhone 4 prototype in 2010 for $5,000, according to CNET. However, that prototype was later returned to Apple after the company alleged that the device had been stolen. Apple may have been unable or unwilling to try to block the sale of Kantor’s device since there is no question that he legally acquired it from Verizon.

4. The first-generation 2G iPhone

Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images

When Apple first released the original 8GB iPhone back in 2007, it sold for $599 with a two-year service contract from AT&T. However, if you’re looking to relive the experience of unpacking the original iPhone today, it will cost you a little bit more than $599 and two years’ worth of service payments. Actually, make that a whole lot more.

As highlighted by TUAW late in 2014, a pair of first-generation 8GB 2G iPhones was recently sold on eBay for $25,436.24. One iPhone was in its original factory sealed box, while the other “near-mint” condition iPhone is in an open box for “display purposes.” While the devices were sold together as a pair, this means that each iPhone was valued at approximately $12,500 — not too bad for a product that was seven years old.

5. Apple-1 computer

Source: TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images

When it comes to the value appreciation of old Apple products, nothing beats the original Apple-1 computer. In 2013, an Apple-1 computer that included a letter from Steve Jobs was sold by Germany’s Auction Team Breker for $671,400. In October 2014, a new record was set when the Henry Ford Museum purchased an Apple-1 computer for $905,000 from auctioneer Bonhams. As noted by Breker, very few of the 200 Apple-1 units that were produced have survived, and all the ones that have sold at auction have commanded hundreds of thousands of dollars.

“The ‘Apple-1’ was designed and hand-built by Steve Wozniak (‘Woz’), in the famous ‘electronics heaven’ of ‘Silicon Valley’, USA.,” reads Auction Team Breker’s item description. “In April 1976 three young entrepreneurs — Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne — founded the Apple Inc. to sell a new kit-form personal computer. Although the Apple-1 was not the earliest of the first generation PCs, it captured computer users’ interest in an unprecedented way.”

More recently, Christie’s auctioned off “The Ricketts’ Apple-1 Personal Computer,” that derives its name from the original owner. According to the auction house, “this example is the only known surviving Apple-1 documented to have been sold directly by Steve Jobs to an individual from his parents’ garage.” While the Ricketts’ Apple-1 had an auction estimate of $400,000 to $600,000, it ended up selling for just $365,000 on December 11, according to Christie’s. Still, as noted by Wozniak on his official website, the original selling price of the Apple-1 computer was only $666.66, so there’s no question that holding on to one of these ancient computers paid off for the owners in the long run.

Read the original article from The Cheat Sheet]]>http://www.cheatsheet.com/technology/reasons-you-want-to-save-old-apple-devices.html/feed/0Need a Career Change? Here Are 16 Jobs in Marijuana Industryhttp://www.cheatsheet.com/money-career/jobs-being-created-by-the-marijuana-industry.html/
http://www.cheatsheet.com/money-career/jobs-being-created-by-the-marijuana-industry.html/#respondSun, 04 Dec 2016 12:54:00 +0000Sam Beckerhttp://wallstcheatsheet.com/?p=472580

Marijuana is legal for recreational use in several states now. Several years have gone by since Colorado and Washington simultaneously legalized marijuana for recreational use, and since then, millions of dollars in profits have been made by small businesses, and tens of thousands of jobs created. Despite some early opposition to the process, the economic gains have been clear.

Tax revenue has been the major selling point to local governments throughout the legalization effort. But there are also numerous other economical benefits to ending prohibition, including an influx of new jobs to the market. Keeping cannabis relegated to the black market meant that the profits from its sale, as well as those working to earn those profits, remained off the books. By bringing marijuana into the legal realm, however, we’re getting a better idea of how the market actually works.

And how much money is going in and out of it.

Opening up a new industry within the economy always brings enormous benefit, especially if that industry — like the marijuana industry – had long been operating in the shadows for so long, with an established consumer base. It’s not just the actual growing and sale of marijuana that brings in revenue and creates jobs; legal cannabis is an entire industry, requiring support staff and regulators as well. All of this means a big influx of employment opportunities for those in areas where legalization is in full swing.

What are these jobs? What do they pay, and how can you get one?

There is a multitude of opportunities, operating just about every function you can imagine. Many of these jobs had previously been available to those in the black market or medical industry only — available to a select few who qualified or willing to work outside of the law. Now, they are becoming mainstream and available to others. Some are lucrative. Others pay low wages.

Here are 16 jobs now being created by the legal marijuana industry, providing new opportunities and giving local economies a shot in the arm; Those that allow it, anyway.

1. Edible creator

Packaged marijuana edibles | Frederic J. Brown/Getty Images

Creating edibles might be a dream job for many. The variations in edibles is immense — a trip a retail shop or medical dispensary will leave most people in disbelief at how many options there are. If you can name it, there’s probably a marijuana-infused version of it.

Soda, oatmeal, baked goods, candy, coffee … the list goes on. Getting into edibles can be difficult, mainly due to its competitive nature. In some areas, every ingredient and levels of THC must be listed appropriately as well. Depending on where you live and your skill level, making edibles can be lucrative, but extremely difficult due to regulatory efforts of local lawmakers.

2. Concentrates processor

A processor creating cannabis concentrates | AFP/Getty Images

This is a field that requires considerable skill, and can also be potentially dangerous. Concentrates include things like hash oils, Rick Simpson oil, dabs and shatter, among others. These products are noted for their incredibly high concentration, which can have powerful effects and be very valuable to medical cannabis patients. The popularity of concentrates is growing rapidly, as vaporizers become more commonplace. As far as creating them, a background in chemistry is helpful, and experience with chemicals and laboratory equipment. Concentrates can be very lucrative, but like anything else, it’s getting more competitive by the day.

3. Glass merchant

Customers check out an assortment of pipes and glass |Frederic J. Brown/Getty Images

This is an industry that has been around for years, although it could never be officially targeted at cannabis users. Selling pipes, bongs, and more recently vaporizers is a business that is only expected to grow as prohibition falls across the country. Whether you can create your own devices by blowing glass, or decide that marketing and selling handheld vaporizers is a better plan, there will always be customers looking for peripherals to help them partake.

4. Courier and delivery

A bicycle courier | Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Made popular by the medical marijuana community, the industry will soon be brimming with delivery and courier services, dropping off customer orders much like a pizza business. Many medical marijuana patients are unable to actually make it in to dispensary locations, so delivery became an attractive option. As retail locations open up, delivery options will most likely come along as well. Whether it be by bicycle or vehicle, couriers are sure to become a part of the lexicon in the near future. Pay is probably not great, but there is always the opportunity for tips!

5. Security

A guard checks IDs at a marijuana store | Theo Stroomer/Getty Images

When retail locations started opening up, security was of paramount concern for many shop owners. While things have calmed down, most retail locations — and many medical dispensaries — have opted to keep security guards on staff. Checking IDs and guarding privacy for customers are the most visible duties, but ensuring that money and product transfers go off without a hitch is another important part of the job. There may be more opportunities for security work in urban locations, but as the industry kicks off, security will be important for storefronts in all environments.

6. Reviewers

A woman inspects marijuana buds | Chris Hondros/Getty Images

Talk about a dream position! Yes, there is a need for marijuana reviewers. Websites like Leafly and Wikileaf are becoming giant platforms for strain reviews and information, letting customers get in on the action on their Yelp-like platform. Strains can differ in a number of ways, not just the basic indica and sativa strains, but hybrids and specialty-bred strains can deliver a wide range of effects. For medical patients in need of high THC or CBD strains, reviews can be very valuable. Finding a way to become a strain reviewer would be difficult, but just like in any other industry, critics are needed.

7. Trimmer

Workers trim marijuana buds | Dan Callister/Getty Images

Marijuana doesn’t fall off the stem in those tight, dried little buds. There is a whole process — or art — to making the finished product look perfect for customer sale. Trimming, although incredibly tedious, can be attractive to many people. Essentially, the process entails taking buds from the plants and chopping off the larger leaves to leave an aesthetically pleasing product. This also helps cut down on excess weight, which ensures customers are getting the most for their money. The job doesn’t pay extremely well, but trimming is a job that needs to be done.

8. Tourism

The tourism segment of the marijuana industry has yet to really take off, but there are companies out there trying. Essentially, tourism companies would bring in revenues by taking tourists out and giving an overview of the industry. From dropping by growing locations to going on a tour of retail and dispensary locations, these companies can really tailor their business models as the market sees fit. As the industry finds its footing, the tourism sector will grow up with it. Think of how there are currently winery tours and apply the same line of thinking to cannabis.

9. Administration

Managers run a marijuana store | Pool/Getty Images

From checking patients or customers in at the front door to ensuring shipments and accounts are all in order, administrative staff is essential. This could be a great opportunity for many professionals looking to get a fresh start in a new industry, especially for accountants, secretarial, and marketing specialists. At this point, the pay might be as good as in other industries, but that should only improve as time goes on.

10. Budtender

Two women work as budtenders at a marijuana store | Chris Hondros/Getty Images

A budtender is exactly like a bartender, except for — you know — bud. A budtender assists customers at the counter by offering their sage advice and knowledge about different cannabis strains, concentrates, and edibles.

A budtender will help you make the perfect selection for the effect you’re looking for. The job requires rather extensive knowledge about the products being offered, as well as identifying any allergies or issues prospective customers may have. Pay for budtenders can really run the gamut, but just like a great bartender, a solid budtender can really make or break a business.

11. Regulation

Holding a manicured bud | Chris Hondros/Getty Images

The role of regulators will vary quite a bit from state to state. In Washington, for example, the industry is regulated in a much tighter way than in Colorado. The laws can evolve over time, as over-regulation can have negative economical effects. But inspectors and regulatory staff are necessary — whether they work for local governments or law enforcement agencies. There should be lots of opportunities to get into regulatory agencies as legalization occurs in more states.

12. Web and software

A woman checks her smartphone | John Moore/Getty Images

As mentioned previously, companies like Leafly are blazing the trail into the online space when it comes to the marijuana industry. Other companies, like Viridian Sciences and WeedMaps, are making their own way. Software to help run marijuana businesses is essential and can include things like accounting programs and product management systems. Companies like WeedMaps and Leafly are there to assist cannabis users in finding the product they’re looking for and creating an online community.

13. Retail shop owner

A marijuana retail shop budtender | Chris Hondros/Getty Images

It’s the ultimate dream for many entrepreneurs — owning your own marijuana retail store! Actually getting the chance to open a store may be difficult enough, as in the case in Washington where licenses were offered to a select few through a lottery system. But as the industry opens up, the opportunity to actually open a retail location will be available to almost anyone who wants to take a shot. Of course, this comes with the necessary business and entrepreneurial prowess that any operation requires, as well as the support staff and suppliers. Opening a store is risky, but in a brand new industry, it could be the perfect opportunity to live out your entrepreneurial dreams.

14. Farmer

An indoor marijuana grow operation | Chris Hondros/Getty Images

That’s right, the world needs farmers. Pot farmers, that is. Where do you think all of this marijuana is coming from, anyway? Well, many people have been growing for years, whether it was under medical protection or otherwise, and have developed techniques to cultivate the perfect product.

Growing marijuana can be time consuming and expensive, and also requires a lot of skill. Similar to opening up a retail location, growing can be risky. There are things like temperature control, space, pests, and seemingly a thousand other issues that can arise, and then finding a place to sell your product can also create issues. But for those who always wanted a chance to be a marijuana farmer, the time is quickly approaching — if it hasn’t yet arrived.

15. Seed harvester

Seed growers at a marijuana farmer’s market | Robyn Beck/Getty Images

Harvesting and selling seeds can go hand-in-hand with being a farmer, but is a bit more specialized. Selling seeds often requires jumping through legal loopholes, but it can be done. Seeds and clones — which are, in a way, infant plants — do have a big market. But in certain places, growing marijuana on your own without a license is illegal. Depending on where you live, selling seeds and clones could be a great business decision — or a terrible one.

16. Consulting

A cannabis consultant meets with clients | Chris Hondros/Getty Images

Consultants. Every industry has them, and they can provide some very valuable insight. For growing specialists who don’t want a farm of their own, consulting can be very lucrative. Also, consultants can help entrepreneurs get their businesses off the launching pad, and also help identify areas for growth and expansion. Marketing consultants can also assist cannabis startups get their brands off the ground, and create a real identity for many businesses in the industry. Consulting requires a great deal of specialized knowledge but could be an excellent opportunity for those who are qualified.

It’s hard to overstate the influence that Steve Jobs has had on Apple. Besides being one of the company’s original co-founders, Jobs also helped bring Apple back from the brink of bankruptcy when he returned to run the company in 1997. Under his guidance, Apple developed and released three of the company’s most successful products: the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad. Soon after his death in October 2011, the company posted an obituary that according to CNN Money stated that “Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.”

More recently, Job’s successor and current CEO Tim Cook noted the influence that Jobs continues to have on the company in an interview with talk show host Charlie Rose. “He is deep in Apple’s DNA. His spirit will always be the foundation of the company,” said Cook. “If you think about the things Steve stood for at a macro-level, he stood for innovation. He stood for the simple, not the complex. He knew that Apple should only enter areas where we could control the primary technology. All of these things are still deep in our company.”

Since the company still derives the vast majority of its revenue from products that were originally created under Jobs’s tenure, there is little doubt that the legendary co-founder and CEO is still “deep in Apple’s DNA.” That being said, Apple has also not been afraid to break with some of Jobs’s strongly held opinions regarding certain aspects of these tech products.. For better or for worse, here are five ways that Apple has diverged from Jobs’s product design rules.

1. iPhones with screens bigger than 3.5 inches

Larger iPhones | Source: Apple.com

Apple’s original iPhone and the several generations of models that followed it all featured 3.5-inch screens, a screen size that Steve Jobs once described as the “perfect size for consumers,” as noted by CNBC. In 2011, the same year when Samsung and other rivals were introducing smartphones with screens as big as 5 inches, Jobs weighed in with his opinion on larger-screen smartphones.

According to Engadget, while responding to a question related to the iPhone 4’s reception problems, Jobs observed that making a phone so large that “you can’t get your hand around it” might help reception, but “no one’s going to buy that.” He also later derisively referred to rivals’ larger-screen smartphones as “Hummers.”

Despite Jobs’s firm pronouncements on the ideal smartphone screen size, Apple released the 4-inch iPhone 5 in 2012. In 2014, the company made an even bigger increase to 4.7 inch and 5.5 inch screen sizes on the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus, respectively. Samsung, a company that pioneered the phablet segment of the smartphone market with its Galaxy Note product line, couldn’t resist pointing out Apple’s change of heart in a tweet featuring Jobs’s quote about big smartphones.

While it’s impossible to know if Jobs’s opinion of larger-screen smartphones would have changed after seeing how thin the latest iPhone models are, there’s no question that the screen size increases have paid off for Apple. The company has had no trouble selling these larger iPhones in bigger and bigger droves.

2. Tablets smaller than the original iPad

iPad and iPad Mini | Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Steve Jobs had some pretty firm ideas about what the ideal screen size for a tablet should be, just as he did for smartphones. During the company’s fiscal fourth quarter earnings call in 2010, the former CEO weighed in with his opinion on what he called “the avalanche of tablets poised to enter the market in the coming months,” according to a transcript provided by Seeking Alpha. As noted by Jobs, many of those tablets — including Samsung’s then-new Galaxy Tab – featured 7-inch screens.

“One naturally thinks that a seven-inch screen would offer 70% of the benefits of a 10-inch screen. Unfortunately, this is far from the truth. The screen measurements are diagonal, so that a seven-inch screen is only 45% as large as iPad’s 10-inch screen,” explained Jobs.

“Apple’s done extensive user-testing on touch interfaces over many years, and we really understand this stuff,” he continued. “There are clear limits of how close you can physically place elements on a touch screen before users cannot reliably tap, flick or pinch them. This is one of the key reasons we think the 10-inch screen size is the minimum size required to create great tablet apps.”

Despite Jobs’s opposition to making a tablet with a screen smaller than 10 inches, the company introduced the 7.9-inch iPad mini around two years later. Tim Cook defended this decision during a fiscal fourth quarter earnings call in 2012 by pointing out that Jobs was opposed to a 7-inch tablet, not a 7.9-inch tablet. “But the difference in just the realistic size between the 7.9, almost 8 versus 7 is 35%,” said Cook in a transcript provided by Seeking Alpha. “And when you look at the usable area, it’s much greater than that. It’s from 50% to 67%. And also, the iPad Mini has the same number of pixels as iPad 2 does.”

While it’s true that Jobs seemed most opposed to the idea of a 7-inch tablet, the former CEO also plainly stated that “the 10-inch screen size is the minimum size required to create great tablet apps.” And while Cook boasted about the higher pixel count of the iPad mini, Jobs specifically dismissed the idea that resolution could compensate for a tablet’s small screen size.

“Well, one could increase the resolution of the display to make up for some of the difference,” said Jobs, according to Seeking Alpha. “It is meaningless, unless your tablet also includes sandpaper, so that the user can sand down their fingers to around one quarter of the present size.”

While it may be awkward to introduce a product line that appears to contradict your former boss’s wishes, Cook doesn’t really need to defend the iPad mini since its success speaks for itself. Although Apple does not separate iPad sales numbers by model, it’s probably safe to assume that the iPad mini has proven reasonably popular since Apple recently released the third generation of the product in October 2014.

3. Non-skeuomorphic software design

iOS on iPhones | Source: Apple.com

Skeuomorphs — realistic imitations of real-world objects — were a major component of early iOS designs. Before iOS 7, Apple’s mobile operating system featured a Notes app icon that looked like a legal pad, a Calendar app icon that looked like a paper-based calendar, and a Game Center that featured a green felt cloth background. Although skeuomorphs can be useful for visually communicating the function of an app to users, the overuse of this design approach can also make software look cluttered and tacky.

Insider sources cited by Fast Company claimed that Jobs was a big proponent of this design approach. “iCal’s leather-stitching was literally based on a texture in his Gulfstream jet,” an unnamed former Apple designer told Fast Company. “There was lots of internal email among UI designers at Apple saying this was just embarrassing, just terrible.”

According to Fast Company’s sources, former software design leader Scott Forstall was also a fan of skeuomorphic software design. In 2012, Forstall left the company in the wake of the problematic Maps app launch and renowned hardware designer Jony Ive was put in charge of Apple’s human interface design. Although Jobs considered Ive to be his “spiritual partner,” as noted by CNET, Ive led the effort to strip all the skeuomorphic elements from iOS 7 in favor of a minimalist design.

Despite Jobs’s love of skeuomorphs in software design, Apple has largely abandoned that design approach because of the familiarity that most people now have with touchscreen-enabled mobile devices. “When we sat down last November (to work on iOS 7), we understood that people had already become comfortable with touching glass, they didn’t need physical buttons, they understood the benefits,” Ive told USA Today soon after the debut of iOS 7 in 2013. “So there was an incredible liberty in not having to reference the physical world so literally. We were trying to create an environment that was less specific. It got design out of the way.”

4. iPad Pro

9.7-inch iPad Pro | Source: Apple.com

Jobs was famously opposed to pairing a stylus with a tablet. “It’s like we said on the iPad, if you see a stylus, they blew it,” said Jobs during an iPhone event in 2010, according to Engadget. Jobs’s disdain for styluses appeared to be related to his love of simplicity, as he revealed during the original iPhone presentation. “Who wants a stylus?” he asked rhetorically at Macworld 2007. “You have to get them and put them away, you lose them. Yuck! Nobody wants a stylus.”

Was Jobs right? Nope. Look over at Samsung and you’ll see it’s Galaxy Note line has been popular in spite of prominently feauturing a stylus for its advanced features. A finger might be great for simple interactions, but the precision of a stylus is hard to beat.

Apple wanted to make a tablet for more complex tasks, and to do that, a stylus was a must (albeit still an optional accessory). The iPad Pro isn’t just an example of Apple straying from Jobs’s design rules, it’s also an instance of Apple playing catchup with other tech companies — in this case, Microsoft’s Surface Pro series.

5. Apple Watch

Apple Watch | Justin Sullivan/ Getty Images

Would Steve Jobs be a fan of the Apple Watch? As Jony Ive revealed to Bloomberg in September 2014, the Apple Watch was fully conceived and created after Jobs’s death so the legendary company co-founder apparently had no input on the project. So while it’s impossible to know how Jobs would have felt about Apple’s wearable tech device, some industry watchers have made convincing arguments that the Apple Watch would have never passed muster with Jobs.

VentureBeat’s John Koetsier cited Jobs’s criticisms about the design of the original Segway as a good jumping off place for understanding how he might have perceived the Apple Watch. According to an excerpt of Steve Kemper’s book Code Name Ginger provided by Harvard Business School, Jobs was highly critical of the Segway’s design.

“’Its shape is not innovative, it’s not elegant, it doesn’t feel anthropomorphic,’ said Jobs, ticking off three of his design mantras,” according to Kemper. “’You have this incredibly innovative machine but it looks very traditional…There are design firms out there that could come up with things we’ve never thought of…things that would make you shit in your pants.’”

So how does the Apple Watch measure up to Jobs’s design mantras? With a rounded rectangular shape that closely resembles many of the smartwatches currently on the market – including the Samsung Galaxy Gear seen above – the Apple Watch can hardly be called “innovative” in this respect. Similarly, it’s hard to see how the Apple Watch’s fairly conventional appearance makes it either “elegant” or “anthropomorphic,” much less make you lose control of your bowels.

Finally, it’s worth noting that Apple’s most successful products had revolutionary functions that made them must-have devices. The iPod put 1,000 songs in your pocket and the iPhone put the Internet in your pocket. What revolutionary function does the Apple Watch have? Essentially it is a wrist worn device that relays messages from your iPhone.

For all of these reasons, it is quite possible that Jobs’s reaction to the Apple Watch might have resembled the reaction of Hartmut Esslinger, a designer who along with Ive is responsible for Apple’s most memorable product designs. “Smartwatches are stupid,” Esslinger told Forbes. “Why would I put cheap electronics on my wrist as a symbol of (my) emotion?”

All told, Apple has remained wildly successful, and the decisions that led the company to violate Jobs’s product design rules were obviously justified.

Jobs himself even admitted that his strong opinions could change from moment to moment. “I just care about success,” said Jobs in a 1995 interview with Bob Cringely provided by CBS News. “So you’ll find a lot of people that will tell you that I had a very strong opinion and they, you know, presented evidence to the contrary and five minutes later, I completely changed my mind, because I’m like that. I don’t mind being wrong and I’ll admit I’m wrong a lot. It doesn’t really matter to me too much. What matters to me is that we do the right thing.” In this sense, breaking Jobs’s product design rules may be the best way for Apple to keep his spirit alive.

Read the original article from The Cheat Sheet]]>http://www.cheatsheet.com/technology/5-ways-apple-has-broken-steve-jobss-product-design-rules.html/feed/0Top 10 States in America With the Lowest Taxes in 2016http://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/states-with-the-lowest-taxes.html/
http://www.cheatsheet.com/culture/states-with-the-lowest-taxes.html/#respondSun, 27 Nov 2016 10:30:00 +0000Eric McWhinniehttp://wallstcheatsheet.com/?p=454800

Where can you find the lowest taxes in America? | Joe Raedle/Getty Images

When it comes to money, it’s not how much you make that matters, it’s what you keep. Numerous expenses hit pocketbooks across the nation, but taxes are often the largest financial burden on Americans. In addition to federal income taxes, the average family pays thousands of dollars in state and local taxes each year. However, tax bills can vary significantly between states.

WalletHub recently analyzed how state and local tax rates compare to the national median in all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia. The purpose was to determine which states pay the highest and lowest tax rates, and to see how each state stacks up against the national median. This study was based on four different types of taxation: real estate taxes, state and local income taxes, vehicle property taxes, and sales and excise taxes.

“Economic theory expects people to consider taxes when deciding where to live, but most studies show taxes only tangentially influence these decisions,” explains Stephanie Hunter McMahon, professor of law at the University of Cincinnati College of Law. “For example, schools drive the decision for many people as among localities and local property taxes are the primary source of local school funding. Taxes are, therefore, more influential for what they do or do not provide rather than the rate itself. This is to be expected because state and local taxes vary greatly, and these taxes are really payments for the goods and services state and local governments provide to the taxpayer and other members of the community.”

Which states have the lowest taxes?

Interestingly, taxpayers in the states with the highest taxes pay three times more than those in states with the lowest taxes. Red states impose lower taxes, with an aggregate rank of 21.75, compared to 29.78 for blue states. We’ve already taken a look at the states with the highest taxes. Now, let’s see which 10 states have the lowest state and local taxes, according to WalletHub.

10. Florida

Florida | Scott Olson/Getty Images

Effective total state and local tax rate: 9.03%

Average annual state and local taxes: $4,868

Difference between state and national average: -15.62%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 11

Florida ranks as the No. 10 best state when it comes to tax bills. Low taxes and an abundance of sunshine are a couple big reasons why retirees are known to flock to Florida. The state does not have vehicle property taxes or income taxes. However, in order to help compensate, Florida has one of the worst sales and excise tax rankings in the nation.

9. South Carolina

South Carolina | Source: https://www.facebook.com/CharlestonCountyPRC

Effective total state and local tax rate: 8.8%

Average annual state and local taxes: $4,742

Difference between state and national average: -17.8%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 9

South Carolina ranks No. 9 for the lowest state and local taxes. The state’s true stand-out is real estate taxes, which average only $1,009 per year. South Carolina also has some of the lowest gas taxes in the country. The average tax bill in South Carolina based on the national median household income is $4,742, compared to more than $5,700 in neighboring Georgia and North Carolina.

8. California

California | Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

Effective total state and local tax rate: 8.8%

Average annual state and local taxes: $4,741

Difference between state and national average: -17.81%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 33

California ranks No. 8 for the lowest state and local taxes. The Golden State’s ranking may surprise people considering its high gas taxes, but its overall tax situation is favorable, at least until the cost of living is factored in. When adjusted for cost of living, California sinks to No. 33 for state and local taxes. It’s the only state in the top 10 that is significantly impacted by living expenses. Movers beware.

7. Idaho

Idaho | Source: Boise Parks & Recreation/Facebook

Effective total state and local tax rate: 8.48%

Average annual state and local taxes: $4,569

Difference between state and national average: -20.8%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 5

Idaho ranks No. 7 for the lowest state and local taxes. The state has no vehicle property taxes, and ranks well on state income taxes and real estate taxes. Americans not particularly keen on Idaho may find comfort nearby. Every bordering state ranks well in WalletHub’s tax analysis. Oregon, the worst-ranking neighborhood state, still comes in No. 11 with an average tax bill of $4,943.

6. Tennessee

Tennessee | Rick Diamond/Getty Images

Effective total state and local tax rate: 7.95%

Average annual state and local taxes: $4,284

Difference between state and national average: -25.75%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 4

Tennessee ranks No. 6 for the lowest state and local taxes. Households making a national median income pay about $4,284 in taxes. In comparison, neighboring states like Kentucky, Mississippi, and Arkansas have average tax bills of $6,449, $6,525, and $6,603, respectively. Tennessee is one of the worst ranking states for food tax rates, but the state doesn’t have a vehicle property tax. Tennessee also ranks No. 6 for income taxes and No. 13 for real estate taxes.

5. Nevada

Nevada | Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Effective total state and local tax rate: 7.72%

Average annual state and local taxes: $4,161

Difference between state and national average: -27.86%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 7

Nevada ranks No. 5 for the lowest state and local taxes. The state ranks No. 8 in the nation for income taxes, and No. 12 for sales and excise taxes. Households making a national median income pay about $4,161 in taxes, lower than both Utah ($5,133) and Arizona ($5,224). However, Nevada ranks fairly average in terms of real estate taxes and vehicle property taxes. Nevada also takes in almost a billion dollars in gambling-related taxes and fees each year.

4. Wyoming

Wyoming | Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images

Effective total state and local tax rate: 7.45%

Average annual state and local taxes: $4,015

Difference between state and national average: -30.4%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 2

Wyoming ranks No. 4 for the lowest state and local taxes, formerly No. 1. The Cowboy State isn’t a top choice to live in for most people considering it’s the least populated state in America, but it’s a favorable state for your taxes. Wyoming doesn’t have a state income tax, and ranks well for real estate taxes. Households making a national median income pay $4,015 in taxes. When adjusted for cost of living, Wyoming ranks No. 2 in the nation for lowest state and local taxes.

3. Montana

Montana | Source: City of Bozeman Official Facebook Page

Effective total state and local tax rate: 6.92%

Average annual state and local taxes: $3,728

Difference between state and national average: -35.37%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 3

In case Wyoming wasn’t far enough north for you, Montana ranks No. 3 for the lowest state and local taxes. The state has the second-lowest sales and excise taxes in the country. Households making a national median income pay $3,728 in taxes, which is 35% below the national average. Cost of living is also favorable and doesn’t affect Montana’s overall tax appeal.

2. Delaware

Delaware | Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images

Effective total state and local tax rate: 6.02%

Average annual state and local taxes: $3,246

Difference between state and national average: -43.74%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 1

Delaware ranks No. 2 for the lowest state and local taxes. Much like the state’s size, tax bills are small, coming in almost 44% below the national average. Delaware doesn’t have vehicle property taxes, and ranks among the best in the nation for real estate taxes and sales and excise taxes. It ranks slightly below average for income taxes, but adjusted for cost of living, Delaware is the best state for low state and local taxes. In addition to low taxes, Delaware’s flexible corporate laws and business-friendly government makes it home to more than one million business entities. In fact, over 60% of the Fortune 500 companies are incorporated in Delaware.

1. Alaska

Alaska | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/Getty Images

Effective total state and local tax rate: 5.69%

Average annual state and local taxes: $3,066

Difference between state and national average: -46.85%

Adjusted rank by cost of living: 6

Alaska may be too northern for most people to even consider living in, but residents enjoy the No. 1 state for the lowest state and local taxes. The state doesn’t have vehicle property taxes, and ranks near the top for low income taxes and sales and excise taxes. Real estate taxes are nothing to write home about, but households making a national median income only pay about $3,066 in taxes, almost 47% below the national average.